International

Trump says US-China trade talks ‘going well’

by Douglas Gillison Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday touted the chances of success of US-China trade negotiations as the talks entered a second day, saying Beijing was eager to make a deal. In a morning series of tweets, he also said a final deal would leave “NOTHING” unresolved but a bargain could only be struck after he meets with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping “in the near […]

Deadly Arctic cold strains resources in US Midwest

By Nova SAFO (AFP) — Frozen water mains and strained natural gas supplies left the US Midwest struggling Thursday as a deadly Arctic air mass had tens of millions of Americans shivering for a second day. Ten deaths have been attributed to the extreme weather since the weekend. Schools and businesses remained closed in several midwestern states, people were encouraged to stay home, and travellers were stranded by grounded flights and halted trains. Natural gas […]

Trudeau urged anew to take back Canadian trash dumped in PHL

(Eagle News) – -The EcoWaste Coalition has reiterated its demand for Canada to take its trash back. In her letter to Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Aileen Lucero, coordinator for the environmental group, noted that the issue of the container vans filled with mixed waste including diapers, electronic equipment, among others, languishing in the Philippines has “dragged on for five years without resolution, despite promises from the Canadian government to address the problem..” According to […]

World’s top two shipbuilders in deal to merge: Seoul

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — The world’s biggest shipbuilder, South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries, has reached a deal to acquire a majority stake in ailing number two Daewoo from the government, Seoul said Thursday. The world’s top three shipbuilders are South Korean — Samsung Heavy ranks third — but the industry has been hammered in recent years by overcapacity and plunging ship prices. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering has struggled in particular and has repeatedly […]

Arctic air sends temperatures well below zero in midwest US

by Nova SAFO Agence France-Presse CHICAGO, United States (AFP) — A brutal cold wave moved eastward Thursday after bringing temperatures in the US Midwest lower than those in Antarctica, grounding flights, closing schools and businesses and raising fears of hypothermia. The extreme weather has now been blamed for as many as eight deaths, US news outlets reported. Mail deliveries were suspended and people were encouraged to stay home in nearly a dozen US states where […]

Mexican president declares ‘drug war’ over

MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador declared the country’s war on drugs over Wednesday, saying his government would no longer prioritize using the army to capture cartel kingpins. However, critics questioned the announcement, pointing out that the leftist president has not taken the army off the streets as he pledged during his campaign, and is proposing the creation of a national guard that opponents say would permanently militarize the country. […]

Displaced Syrian children sift through trash to buy bread

by Aaref Watad Agence France Presse KAFR LUSIN, Syria (AFP) — Outside a camp for the displaced in northwest Syria, 15-year-old Sabaa al-Jassim hacked away at a mountain of trash hoping to find scraps to sell for food. Using a hooked metal rod, he stabbed at acrid household waste in the village of Kafr Lusin, looking for plastic to trade for a few dollars to feed his 11-member family. “I go to the dump to […]

Corsica gunman found dead after killing one, wounding five

by Maureen COFFLARD Agence France Presse BASTIA, France (AFP) — A gunman who killed one person and wounded five others in the Corsican capital Bastia on Wednesday committed suicide after holing up in the building where he lived, officials said. French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said an elite police unit had “intervened” and the body of the shooter had been found. “He committed suicide,” the minister told the National Assembly in Paris. Authorities have ruled […]

Europe stands against May’s bid to rewrite Brexit

by Dave Clark / with Alice Ritchie in London Agence France Presse BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — European leaders moved Wednesday to head off British Prime Minister Theresa May’s bid to rewrite the Brexit divorce deal, warning they will not budge. Having thrown out the exit deal May negotiated with the EU, divided British lawmakers voted Tuesday to send her back to get an Irish border “backstop” clause removed. May seized on this as a chance […]

‘Yellow vest’ injuries spark legal challenge to French police

by Clare BYRNE Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — A rights group and a major trade union went to France’s top administrative court Wednesday seeking a ban on riot police using rubber bullets, blamed for injuring dozens of “yellow vest” protesters. Activists have denounced the police for their use of the projectiles during two months of anti-government protests, which have repeatedly ended in rioting. A government spokesman told the court that police had opened […]

Seven migrants dead, 23 missing in Colombia shipwreck

BOGOTA, Colombia (AFP) — Seven migrants are dead and 23 missing after their boat capsized in the Caribbean Sea off northwestern Colombia, officials said Wednesday. The vessel carrying 18 adults and 14 children was upended by a wave early Monday that left passengers “adrift in the sea,” said Lilia Cordoba, the mayor of the Colombian coastal town of Acandi. Seven bodies, including a child, were recovered on Tuesday and Wednesday along two beaches in the […]

Venezuela protests a ‘fight for freedom:’ Trump

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday reiterated strong US support for Venezuela’s opposition and said protesters demanding the ouster of  President Nicolas Maduro were fighting for freedom. “Large protests all across Venezuela today against Maduro. The fight for freedom has begun!” Trump tweeted. Trump said that earlier he’d spoken with self-declared acting president Juan Guaido, who has been recognized by Washington, to reinforce “strong United States support for Venezuela’s fight to […]